1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to templates used in the process of marking items for being cropped, or cut, to a predetermined size and desired alignment.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art:
Templates for use in drawing figures are commonly available for many drafting applications. Examples are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. Des. 284,089, Des. 288,538, and Des. 322,039. Many devices are available to form circles, while others bear complicated apertures for creating linear geometric forms. Finally, some combine both functions into a single device, such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,736,526 and 5,058,285. All function adequately for their intended purpose of aiding the drafting process. Such templates are normally in the form of a thin plastic panel having differently shaped and sized holes defined therein. When a certain figure is to be drawn using a template, the edge of a corresponding hole of the template is followed with a pencil, a pen, or the like which is being pressed against a drawing sheet. Such templates are useful in drawing various exactly alike figures such as computer program flowchart symbols, circles, ellipses, triangles, squares, and other shapes, without making actual dimensional measurements.
Although the drafting templates identified in the prior art are useful when applied to their intended purpose, none of the templates perform the functions of the present invention in a manner that would be readily appreciated by a person either skilled or unskilled in drafting template usage. Whereas some of the prior art templates do contain straight peripheral and/or internal edges by which lines could be drawn, as well as circular apertures, or holes, that could be used to draw circles, none of the prior art templates have been configured in a manner whereby all of the following features are aligned to coincide with the most commonly found loose leaf page sizes used in multi-ring receptacles such as day-planner type personal organization binders, to wit: the length of the external peripheral edges; the lines inscribed within the template; and the plurality and sizes of holes. None of the prior art templates incorporate lines or other markings simulating customary boundaries for a printed page, whereby the user quickly can visualize and align the template for the optimum alignment of the material being cropped. None of the prior art templates incorporate holes specifically sized to coincide with the customary hole sizes for the most commonly found loose-leaf page sizes used in said multi-ring receptacles. None of the prior art templates incorporate narrow rectilinear holes or slots for marking in a configuration that permits the embodiment of multiple template sizes into one template panel.
The use of any of the prior art examples as a cropping template would entail a considerable amount of time on the part of the user to determine and mark both the appropriate peripheral size of the desired page as well as the proper location and alignment of the holes to be punched for use with a multi-ring, loose-leaf binder, or similar receptacle. Even persons skilled in the use of draining templates would normally require a considerable number of trial and error attempts prior to their being able to use one of the prior art templates in a manner that would accomplish results similar to that which a person, who is both unskilled in the use of draining templates and a new user of the present invention, can accomplish on the first try and within seconds of beginning the cropping procedure.
It is the primary object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a template which allows persons who have never used any type of drafting template quickly and easily to align and mark paper or other material for cropping to a predetermined size, and, if desired, mark the material for hole-punching for inclusion in an appropriate receptacle such as a multi-ringed, loose-leaf binder (e.g., personal organization day-planner binder, etc.).